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Soroka wins first home start since 2020, Olson homers twice and drives in 5 as Braves crush Marlins 16-4

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:25:44 GMT

ATLANTA (AP) — Michael Soroka won his first home start in nearly three years, Matt Olson homered twice and drove in five runs and the National League-leading Atlanta Braves won their sixth straight game with a 16-4 rout of the Miami Marlins on Friday night.Ronald Acuña Jr., Eddie Rosario, Austin Riley and Sean Murphy also went deep to give the Braves 153 homers, by far the most in the majors. They hit 61 in June to set a franchise record for a single month, breaking the mark of 56 from June 2019.Soroka (1-1) took the mound in a home game for the first time since Aug. 3, 2020, when he tore his Achilles tendon for the first of two times. It marked his first game in front of fans at Truist Park since 2019, the year he went 13-4 with a 2.68 ERA, earned an All-Star nod and finished sixth in the Cy Young Award voting.Miami’s Luis Arraez, the majors’ leading hitter, went 1 for 4 and his batting average dipped to .390.Atlanta broke the game open with a five-run first inning. Acuña sin...

Orioles drop third straight, 8-1 to Twins, as Dean Kremer and the offense stumble in rain-delayed game

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:25:44 GMT

For just the second time this season, the Orioles have lost three straight games.After a 1-hour, 26-minute rain delay, starting pitcher Dean Kremer was crushed, Baltimore’s bats mustered only four hits and the Orioles lost, 8-1, to the Minnesota Twins at Camden Yards.Kremer, who entered Friday tied for the team lead with eight wins, was bombarded by the Twins, who scored in all four innings the right-hander pitched. In three-plus innings, Kremer surrendered seven runs as his ERA ballooned from 4.50 to 5.04.Austin Hays recorded two hits to boost his batting average to .316, but the rest of the Orioles’ lineup managed just two hits against starter Pablo López and Minnesota’s bullpen. Baltimore’s lone run came off the bat of Adley Rutschman, whose high fly ball in the sixth barely cleared the right field wall.The seven-run margin of defeat is tied for Baltimore’s fourth-largest of the season. Three of their five worst losses have come with the Orioles...

Grizzlies sign Derrick Rose to 2-year deal, look to fill leadership void

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:25:44 GMT

Derrick Rose was a positive veteran presence with the Knicks for over two seasons. Now he’ll join a team that not only desperately needs his leadership, but also his point-guard minutes during Ja Morant’s suspension.Rose, 34, agreed Friday to a two-year deal with the Memphis Grizzlies, according to multiple reports. The former MVP, who was sent into free agency after the Knicks declined his contract option, joins a potential title contender besieged last season by immaturity. The most glaring issue was Morant’s behavior with firearms and an alleged assault.The 23-year-old is suspended the first 25 games of next season, leaving an opening for Rose in the rotation for at least the first two months.Rose became a regular DNP with the Knicks after his longtime coach, Tom Thibodeau, pulled him from the rotation in favor of Jalen Brunson, Immanuel Quickley, Quentin Grimes and Miles McBride.Rose played less than a combined five minutes after New Year’s Eve, averaging...

CRA fires 20 employees, investigating hundreds for taking CERB payments

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:25:44 GMT

The Canada Revenue Agency has fired multiple employees and is investigating hundreds of other after internal investigations revealed that they had taken Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) payments while employed.As of June 30, the CRA confirmed that 20 employees are no longer with the CRA after internal reviews, and that the number could rise after reviews are completed.“The CRA has since launched a broader internal review process to identify any CRA employees who inappropriately received the CERB while employed with the CRA. We are currently investigating a very limited number of our employees, representing approximately 600 employees, or less than 1% of the CRA’s total workforce,” said Sylvie Branch, media relations for the CRA, in a statement.“Being a current employee of the CRA does not necessarily mean an individual was ineligible for the CERB. An internal review process to investigate each case is warranted as the CRA employs individuals with a variety ...

Newly formed Hurricane Beatriz sweeps close to Mexico’s southwest Pacific coast

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:25:44 GMT

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Newly formed Hurricane Beatriz swept along Mexico’s southwestern Pacific coast late Friday, threatening heavy rain for several southern states.The storm was centered about 50 miles (80 kilometers) south-southeast of Manzanillo and had maximum sustained winds of 85 mph (140 kmh), the U.S. National Hurricane Center said. Beatriz was moving northwest at 12 mph (19 kmh) and forecast to generally keep to that course and slow down through Saturday night.Beatriz’s center was expected to move very near or onto parts of the coast in the coming hours before beginning to weaken while heading away back over open waters Sunday and Monday.The storm could dump three to five inches of rain, with up to eight inches in some locations, from Guerrero state north to Sinaloa state, forecasters said.A hurricane warning was in effect from north of Cabo Corrientes to Punta Mita.Meanwhile, Hurricane Adrian continued to move deeper into the Pacific. The storm’s maximum sustained winds...

Humid air threatens scattered thunderstorms in Saturday’s opening hours — arrival of cool air aloft sets stage for numerous thunderstorms to “bubble up” later Saturday and Saturday night; Sundays showery “NNE” winds to drop temps; Hot, humid July 4th follows

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:25:44 GMT

Friday’s morning’s Chicago area haze (and dense fog) isn’t just Canadian wildfire smoke—Chicago air qualities are actually marginally less onerous than Thursday thanks to the Thursday afternoon thunderstorms in and nearby. The Friday haze is the product of an influx of muggy tropical air and 70+degree dew points. Another severe weather outbreak expected downstate FridayIt’s been DENSE WILDFIRE SMOKE off Canada’s tragic and record wildfires which has shrouded the Chicago area slashing visibilities, often to a mile or two (and lower) in recent days. But, Friday’s hazy pall is as much a product of humid tropical air as it is smoke.Make NO mistake. Air qualities Friday will win NO AWARDS in Chicago, but at least the air quality here is better than in Washington DC, New York, Toronto and Montreal and the AQI readings are half what they were yesterday.We can thank Thursday afternoon’s thunderstorms which helped “MIX” the air, thinning out smoke and pollution concentrations even as the sto...

'The Firecracker Open' kicks off at historic Austin golf course

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:25:44 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — July 4th weekend means more than just fireworks in Austin, there will be parades and gatherings, but also the historic Firecracker Open.The golf tournament started back in 1946 and has moved around to a few different Austin golf courses over the years, but the majority of those tournaments has been at Lion's Municipal Golf Course.The tournament will start on Saturday morning and run through Monday."The Austin community is really invested in this tournament, they are really invested in this course and to have my name on a trophy somewhere associated with this means a lot to me," said former champion Scott Roudebush, who won in 2009. ‘Hearing your stories changes everything;’ Austin group wants to hear stories about Lion’s Municipal Golf Course Roudebush will be competing in this years tournament which golfers have to qualify for to enter.Randy Petri, who won the tournament in 1959, 1962 and 1965 says he grew up playing Muny and loves spending time on the course."194...

What's in the water? Toxic algae thriving

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:25:44 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Lady Bird Lake is a popular place for paddle boarders and kayakers. But with more signs of toxic blue green algae, it's getting some unwanted attention.Toxic blue-green algae thrives in warm, slow-moving water and as the temperatures rise in Austin, it's thriving.Lady Bird Lake recently made the top 10 list of troubled lakes to watch this toxic algae season."It made No. 6 on the list," said Lucia Ross with BlueGreen Water Technologies, the company that put the list together.This season the toxic algae is showing up sooner, and lake goers like Sam Helberg have noticed."It definitely makes me a little weary to get in the water," said Helberg said. "A lot of my friends won't even take their dogs down here because of the algae. I have seen people run and get their dogs before they have gone into the water."At high levels of exposure, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said the algae can cause symptoms ranging from stomach aches, to rashes, to respirato...

Twins break out the bats in 8-1 win over Orioles

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:25:44 GMT

BALTIMORE — Whatever Kyle Farmer was offering, his teammates sure seemed eager to collect on it.Farmer was quiet on the specifics of his performance-based incentive system, preferring to keep those details within the clubhouse. But it’s clear the infielder will have a long line of teammates to reward after the Twins’ offense finally broke through on Friday night.It started with leadoff hitter Carlos Correa, thrust into the role for just the fourth time in his career. And the good at-bats continued throughout the game, an 8-1 win over the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards.Following an uninspiring series in Atlanta during which the Twins (41-42) were thoroughly outplayed for three days, the players held a meeting, allowing them the opportunity to put everything out in the open after a first half in which the offense underperformed expectations.Farmer, one of the veterans who spoke, noted that players always play better when there are incentives baked into their contract...

‘One of the better arms’ in Twins system, Saints’ Andrew Bechtold becomes two-way player

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:25:44 GMT

The story has a Hollywood feel to it.It was late April in Rochester, N.Y., and Saints utility player Andrew Bechtold was catching as various pitchers threw a bullpen session. When the work was done, Bechtold asked if it would be OK if he got on the mound and throw a few.Saints pitching coach Pete Larson picks things up from there:“We still had the (video and pitch speed-measuring equipment) running and he started going up the ladder a little bit — 94 (mph), 95, 96, 97 — and then had a rounded-up 98.”Word soon spread throughout the organization about what had taken place. Within a week, Bechtold was on a program aimed at turning him into a two-way player.Skip ahead to late June in Toledo, Ohio, with the 27-year-old Bechtold — who had never been a pitcher, going as far back as high school — making his professional pitching debut. He followed that up with his second outing on Thursday at CHS Field.The only thing missing is the storybook ending, and Larson said it might just be a matter...